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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. mark — a grade
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. cap — a hat
  6. cap — of ice
  7. kid — child
  8. cap — a lid
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. kid — to tease
  11. hand — in cards
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. rush — hurry
  14. mark — a trace
  15. hand — help
  16. date — the fruit
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. patient — calm and waiting

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com